Friday, July 31, 2009

Check out this article I found on MNN. Not only is Jason Mraz a great musician but he's a farmer. Or at least grows his own avacados - yummy. Quite a cool tidbit and I also enjoyed reading about all the rest of the farmers under 40.

Growing up my grandparents always had a garden in their backyard. I spent a lot of time helping my Popo tend to all the vegetables and fruits. They would also buy what they didn't grow from local farms to can or turn into jams, etc. I have fond memories of sitting on the back patio with my mom and grandma snapping beans and shucking corn. Moments like that have given me respect for where my food comes from and the hard work that went into it.

I want to be able to have that at my own house. S and I are planning on starting our own little vegetable garden in the back next spring. I have decided on the spot for it in our postage stamp of a back yard. This fall we are going to remove the bush, etc. from the area and start getting it ready for the spring. I am thinking it might be best to elevate it slightly, but I will have to look into that - it might cause standing water under our deck which is never a good thing.

I think we will grow:

Tomatoes

Corn (not sure if this will work with our space restraints)

Okra

Squash

Onions

Herbs - but I will put these up on the deck in pots to keep them away from the rabbits

Thursday, July 30, 2009

So I am currently on the search for an outdoor table for our back deck. We have lived in our house for 4 years and still have nothing more than 4 foldable chairs for seating. And let me note its a big deck and part of the reason we bought the house - but anyway.One day at Lowe's I found these cool retro chairs in green and blue.The key here is they have some bounce to them. S won't let me buy outdoor furniture unless the chairs bounce - it's a rule. Also the chairs are SUPER CHEAP - only $35 a piece - a bonus. I have always like the 50's style cast iron patio furniture, especially the gliders. Like these from Vintage Gliders - aren't the back cut outs just neat and the fact that they are restored is amazing.

But like I mentioned I need to keep this purchase on the cheap side. Now the problem with the cool, cheap chairs from Lowe's is the table that goes with them is tiny. We were hoping to buy 4 chairs and a dining table, but no such luck.

So here are a few tables that I have been eyeing for inspiration if anything:

"...Because life's too short anywayBut at least it's better then averageAs long as you got meAnd I got you..."

I didn't get to post yesterday because S and I headed straight to the Jason Mraz concert after work. It was a great show. I just adore his music and luckily I found tickets on Craigslist for less than face value. AND they were 2nd row!

We have had some crazy storms down South this summer, but luckily what was predicted to be an all night boomer ended around 5. So we of course brought our umbrellas and raincoats but the skies stayed clear and beautiful the whole night. He had a great set list with an awesome cover of Lionel Richie's All Night Long - I loved it! And he also played my all time favorite You and I Both, so I went home happy. Oh and check out the percussionist Toca's golden gnome. We actually got to give him five after the concert. Too cool!

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

I found this etsy shop awhile back but haven't had a chance to post it. These clocks are delicious and I must have the honeycomb one immediately. I know exactly where I will put it ... hint, hint S. They are done by pilotdesign. I love how graphic each of his clocks are and how they have a slight retro feel.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Today I write with a somber tone. I found out last night that a friend of mine from college has gone missing. His name is Elias Sorokin. He grew up in Carboro but in the past few years moved west to the LA area. He has been missing since Monday July 20th.

"... he went up to Northern California for a few meetings and has not returned to LA. He was last seen Monday evening 7/20/09 around 8 pm in Oakland.

A text was received to my dear friend Andrea (his good friend and business partner) on Monday night at 10 pm that he would be arriving back to LA around 4 am, Tuesday morning. He has not been heard of since.

We have now found out that someone has tried to cash a falsified check (he carries his check book on him at all times) and tried to use his credit cards."

Please pray that Elias will be found alive and unharmed. He has the kindest soul of anyone I have ever met. He wouldn't hurt a fly and is always wanting to lend a hand to someone in need. I pray that whoever has him or wherever he is, God will watch over him until he can return home to his friends and family.

I am posting these amazing hand engraved votive holders from daydreemdesign as a visual to Elias until he returns.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

So I am slightly disheartened to post this afternoon. I went to yard sales this morning and in the back of my mind I was going to post a picture of some great find that I found on my adventure. BUT I bought nothing, and I am pretty sure that people just have junk - or at least that is what they were getting rid of today. But let's not let my failure at yard sale shopping ruin today's post. Once again (if not every day of my life) etsy provides me access to some amazing artists all over the world. Today however I have discovered a sculptor/ceramic artist just down the road in Asheville - elementclaystudio. I just adore how nature has inspired everything in her shop. I especially am drawn to the sea urchin below. I love how she has left the exterior unglazed and then inside the bowl is a pop of this beautiful ocean blue glaze. I enjoy how she has captured the texture of the sea urchin. The texture grabs your attention and she has utilized that in many of her other pieces.

I also must post this series of pears from her collection, because of the name of this blog (which I will need to get around to explaining one of these days). Once again I love how simple and clean her work is. I can just imagine a cluster of these pears displayed on my mantel.

I hope to meet you some day Heather when I am up that way and visit your studio. Until then keep up the amazing work! Not sure if I will be motivated to get out early next weekend, BUT maybe next Saturday I will have something to post from a less junky yard sale experience - maybe.

Friday, July 24, 2009

I never posted my picture from driving up to the mountains last week. Every time I see those Smokey's peer around the bend at me it just puts me at ease. What an amazing thing that God created and put on this earth in my home state! Though I love the beach and the warm weather - I am a mountain girl at heart. And did I mention the weather was AMAZING!

As for the designey thing for today - check out this cuteness from kg+ab out of Brooklyn. I don't know what I would put in this cupcake but whatever it would be it would make me cooler. kg+ab have a bunch of amazing white porcelain items on the etsy site, so be sure and check them out. And none of my friends be surprised if they receive a non-edible pastry for their birthday.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

I was tooling around on Etsy this evening and I found this neat poster from Roll & Tumble Press.

It brought back fond memories of my weeks in Arkansas every summer visiting my grandpa. He lived in a small town in southern Arkansas, Camden. There wasn't a lot to do, so we were usually tasked with entertaining ourselves.

My grandpa had an old brownie camera that was stuck up in the top cabinet in the kitchen. Everysummer when we would go visit I would get it down and "take pictures". When I found it one day when helping my mom hunt down some sort of pot or pan, I wished that there would be a half used roll in there that I would find and we could get developed. It didn't but I still thought it was the coolest. Luckily before my grandpa pasted away I brought it home with me. It's one of the few things I have of his but I treasure it so much. (The image to the right is the same camera that I have now.)

I have never been much of a photographer - I have this innate ability to take the worst, unfocused pictures. BUT I love photographs, especially old ones. I love the story behind them and the people in them many of which I never got to meet. I have a bunch of old photographs on my family and some of S's. Having a connection to the past is very important to me.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

As I promised here is the real blog for today. I wish I could blog at work but I think that would just not be a good idea. Maybe if things slow down that can fill my time. But for now I will just have to wait for the evenings or after-supper.

And while I'm on the subject I think that supper is a word that just doesn't get used enough. I think I will start using it on a regular basis. Not sure if I will replace lunch with dinner, but I think supper will definitely be a nice addition to my vocab.Since I have been on vacation the whole weekend I didn't have much time to find anything new to post.

So this would be a perfect time to post about one of my favorite local artist. I met Renee at last year's Handmade Market (I use 'met' loosely here). I stopped by Wolfie + the Sneak's booth and feel in love with their work. I bought a calendar which brightens my work cube every day. I wish I had bought more because she has less stuff on her etsy site nowadays. The image on the left is the July image from my fav little calendar. I have plans to make something really cool out of all the images when this year is up ... but I have a few months to go! The image to the right is from the farmer's market series. Doesn't it make you hungry for some fresh fruit and a yummy slice of tomato.

I also have another one of her pieces hanging in my house. I am considering getting the Summer & Spring but I need to find the right place for them to hang out. Maybe in the kitchen!

I just returned from a long weekend at the lake. Friends, food, some beverages and sun - you really can't beat that. I will have to post tonight since I am at work. Unless you want to see PDFs from review agencies because I have nothing pretty to show you here.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

I am off to the mountains for work today. I have a meeting with a facilities dept. of one of the local universities. Luckily it is just down the road from my in laws so I will be sleeping on the couch and getting to visit a bit on this trip as well.

I also hope to swing into one of the cute shops up that way and buy a LATE birthday present for K. I am such a bad friend her birthday was almost 2 weeks ago and I am just now getting around to getting her something. Procrastination is my middle name.

These are by Ruth Tomilson from her Flora collection. The first time I saw these I thought the flowers were felt, but they are actually porcelain. What skill! Her other collections are just as amazing. I just love how delicate and feminine all of her work is but not in a traditional way.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Yesterday I spent a good portion of the day cleaning out two of the closets upstairs. I sadly have to admit they were full of wedding stuff. Yes as in stuff from S and my wedding 3+ years ago. It is amazing that I have ignored it all for so long. However, it was cool to look through cards I kept from friends and family or my wedding planning notebook. I still think I would be a good event planner! The biggest thing I tackled was getting the melted votive candles out of 78 glass votive holders. This was something I had put off because wax sucks. But after some googling, I found two ways of removing these old candles. The first was putting them in the freezer. This was the cleanest method but was only 50% effective. So I moved onto the messier method - melting the wax. I placed the votives face down on a cookie sheet covered in aluminum foil. Then set the oven at 200 degrees and walked away. This worked to get the candle out and was pretty cool to watch each one slowly melt and then plop onto the sheet. Unfortunately, it didnt leave the holders clean of wax. All the wax that slid down the sides then melted in a thin layer. Oh well. I am planning on selling a lot of the stuff including the votive holders so hopefully some bride out there will be willing to do a little work to remove the rest.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

I religiously follow Design*Sponge and have gotten a lot of amazing ideas from Grace and others cool posts. Secretly I dream of having a blog that is followed as much as Grace and Joy (they are my blogging heroes).

For the past 6 months S and I have been seriously talking about getting another dog. When I say seriously I mean I surf the internet for cuties and then send him links to which he responses cute or super cute. We are making a lot of headway. One thing that holds us back is we have the bestest doggie in the whole wide world. The Bobo! And we worry that no dog will ever hold a candle to his awesomeness. Secondly S wants a border collie, period. And I lean more to the small to medium size dogs. Anyway all this rambling brings me be back to d*s. On a recent post about a cool folding screen turned headboard there was the cutest picture of a border collie pup - and I fell in love. Of course we are no closer to getting a second dog, but we both agreed this doggie was super cute! Now I need to find a picture of Bo to post. He is beyond super cute but unfortunately the does not have a stylish headboard to pose in front of. I need to put that on the list of things to work on in our house. Which is always a work in progress!

I hope I can keep this up. S and I tried a blog for a little while but it came to a halt at the end of last year. My real goal with this blog is to talk more about design-y things. I find so much inspiration from different design blogs and always think in the back of my head 'i could do this'. Well here I am doing it or at least trying. I hope my readers find this useful or at least entertaining.